Louis Vuitton Seizes The Day With Complex New Tambour Carpe Diem
Louis Vuitton’s ‘La Fabrique du Temps’ houses not only a tremendous amount of expertise but also a great deal of passion. In the past, we have already seen that the two combined can result in tantalizing creations that redefy watchmaking. With the new Tambour Carpe Diem, Louis Vuitton succeeds in that again by bringing to life a skull and snake that not only tells the time but also serves as a constant reminder to savor it.
The 46.8 mm large Tambour-case is crafted from pink gold, which offers a stunning contrast with the black dial, showing the famous monogram pattern. Instead of being fitted with regular hands, the dial shows a snake crawling through a skull. Both look very realistic, apart from their unique pattern, which is again a subtle nod to Louis Vuitton’s world. The dial, snake, and teeth of the skull are the work of renowned enamel artist Anita Porchet, while the engravings are made by Dick Steenman.
Both elements also play an essential role in telling the time, which the watch does on-demand by pressing a button. This makes the dial come to life. The hourglass serves as the watch’s power reserve indicator, which is 100-hours when fully wound. The rattlesnake’s head moves to the side, revealing the hour in the skull’s forehead, while its tail indicates the minutes. The skull itself has one of its eyes changing into a Monogram flower, as its jaws start laughing, showing the words that explain the deeper meaning of this watch: Carpe Diem, or in English: Seize the day.
Not a detail has passed the keen eye of Louis Vuitton’s designers and artisans. The crown shows the Louis Vuitton logo combined with a skull, and the push-piece activating the animations is carved like a snake, with two rubies set as eyes. While caliber 525 is already very complex, consisting out of 426 components, did the watchmakers of Louis Vuitton even achieved to position key elements so that the back of the watch shows a skull as well. It is further testimony of the incredible expertise at Louis Vuitton’s ‘La Fabrique du Temps,’ and how the brand and its artisans work hard to seize every day, making a mark on the world of Haute Horlogerie.
